7th March, 2013
Media executives gathered at the Premier Hotel, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital on 1 March 2013, to elect a new president and other executive members for the Nigerian Guild of Editors. They will serve for the next two years.
We congratulate the Nigerian editors on a successful election. This shows that as agenda setters, they have, like other professional bodies in the country, shown our politicians that democracy can thrive and mature here.
As Femi Adesina, the new President of the Guild said in his acceptance speech that he was happy that the Guild rose above “primordial tribal and religious sentiments,” Nigerian editors should carry this beyond rhetorics. This also applies to the spirit of sportsmanship exhibited by Abdulrahman that day.
Before the election, there were fears that the North- South dichotomy would tear the editors apart. Now that this is over, the Guild should continue as one.
Also, Adesina should, apart from extending a hand of fellowship to his opponent, work hard to continue and even surpass the record of his predecessor, Gbenga Adefaye. In other words, he should not renege on his promise of: “building a befitting secretariat at Abuja, boosting the welfare of the members who would be embarking on training and re-training at Pan African University, Lagos, ensuring press dignity and its freedom.
On the day of the election the executive, headed by Gbenga Adefaye, the General Manager, Publication/Editor-in-Chief, Vanguard Newspapers, was dissolved. The electoral panel was chaired by the former Managing Director of the New Nigeria Newspapers, NNN, Alhaji Mohammed Haruna.
Only four offices: President, Deputy President, Vice President (North) and Standing Committees were contested for, as many of the combatants stood down. The main gladiators for the presidential seat that day were the Deputy-Editor-in-Chief/Deputy Managing Director, The Sun Newspapers, Femi Adesina and Managing Director, New Nigeria Newspapers, NNN, Alhaji Tukur Abdulrahman.
In the end, Adesina won with 149 votes (against 57 scored by his opponent, Abdulrahman). Aisha Sule who scored 137 votes, defeated Ken Njoku (he had 57 votes), for the position of Deputy President. While Suleiman Uba Gaya polled 102 votes, Ali M. Alli who scored 62. With that, Gaya emerged Vice President (North). Ali Hakeem and Sebastin Abu scored 108 and 105 votes, in that order, to be elected as standing committee members. Other offices were occupied unopposed: Vice President (East), Victor Agusiobo, Vice President (West), Steve Ayorinde, Secretary, Isaac Ighure, Assistant Secretary, Mustapha Isa, Treasurer, Ogbang Akwaji, and Social/Publicity Secretary, Funke Egbemode.